Massive
corruption at govt hospitals

GOVERNMENT
hospitals are riddled with massive corruption, underhand dealings as well as
the flouting of State Procurement Board (SPB) regulations and procedures in
the procurement of medical equipment, an official investigation has
revealed.

Report by Staff Writers

According to a report titled
Investigations Report on the Procurement Processes by Government Hospitals
under the Targeted Approach by the National Economic Conduct Inspectorate
(NECI), the investigation was triggered by reports of irregularities in the
procurement of hospital requirements at Parirenyatwa and Mutare General
hospitals by government officials in connivance with suppliers.

The
report is now in the hands of the police and Anti-Corruption
Commission.

The report reveals an inspection in loco was carried
out at Harare Hospital, the first recipient of funding under the Targeted
Approach scheme to resuscitate essential health services after an outcry on
the parlous state of affairs at the institution.NECI noted glaring
irregularities in the tender for a C-Arm mobile image intensifier acquired
by the hospital on September 23, 2009.

“The tender was awarded to the
lowest bidder, Axis Medical which quoted US$48 600. After awarding the
tender, the end user decided they wanted a C-Arm with an LCD monitor as
these had become outdated,” the report states.

When specifications are
changed under normal circumstances, the bid should be re-tendered but in
this instance, Axis Medical alone was asked over the telephone to requite
the C-Arm on October 1, 2009 and other bidders were not
consulted.

“Axis upped their price from US$48 600 to US$72 000 and
were awarded as they were the cheapest tender. The fact that bids from other
companies had already been opened meant that Axis Medical had information on
what the next bidder had offered thus presenting an unfair advantage over
the other bidders. Bantex Global had quoted US$78 000,” NECI
revealed.

“The changing of specifications after the tenders have already
been opened leaves room for manipulation of the tender process. In all
fairness, the Procurement Tender Committee (PTC) should have come up with
more precise specifications in the source document, re-tendered the C-Arm or
should have asked other companies to provide quotes on the new
specifications for the benefit of all other bidders,” NECI said.

The
report says there were numerous cases where sole bidders were awarded
tenders at the hospital. In some instances, awards were done on the basis of
two quotations yet the same committees ordered re-tendering under exactly
the same circumstances, according to the report.

In one case of
tenders for the repair of elevators, the department of works unilaterally
raised the price two and a half times on behalf of the bidding party — an
act the report called “a treacherous act whose motivation may need further
probing”.

It also noted the process of recommending a sole supplier
without having noted what others had quoted as in the case of the tender to
overhaul a boiler at Harare Central Hospital is subject to abuse as the
government may end up paying more for what could have been procured for
less.

The report stated that there was no ranking system at Harare
Hospital and tenders were not always awarded on the basis of the lowest bid
as the criteria is often changed circumstantially, rendering the tender
process susceptible to manipulation.

One of the main findings at
Mutare Provincial Hospital, which received US$3 million of the Targeted
Approach funds by the Inspectorate, was that the prices which the hospital
was buying basic items such as keys, paint, paint brushes and wire nails,
were inflated by as much as 100%.

The report queries why basic items were
procured from Harare yet they were readily available in Mutare. It also
pointed to the purchasing of 100 beds from Micknon Engineering for the
nursing home in Mutare which started sagging within days of being assembled,
with some ready to be thrown away.

“A physical inspection by officers who
went to Mutare proved this as the beds were in a sorry state. The springs
were loose and the mattresses were being perforated by the springs resulting
in them being unusable,” NECI report said.

“The usage of US$16 387 on
beds which were condemned before a year speaks volumes of financial
management at the hospital. Management at Mutare Hospital should be held
responsible for purchasing these substandard beds,” the report
recommended.NECI said a substantial amount of purchases at the hospital
exceeded US$50 000 as per SPB procedures.

In other findings, Gweru
Hospital awarded a tender to Telstone for US$60 000 for the acquisition of a
washing machine extractor despite having a ranking score lower and more
expensive than Acqui-Pack which had quoted US$40 365.

‘World
class’ NRZ a fading memory

JOHN Chitoro, 70,
fondly remembers travelling by train when the National Railways of Zimbabwe
(NRZ) was a viable entity. He experienced “world class service” in the 1980s
and early 1990s on business trips and holiday travel.

Report by Brian
Chitemba

“It was an ideal, efficient and reliable mode of transport for
those who didn’t want to fly or travel by road,” Chitoro recalls. “I used to
travel first or second class and enjoyed value for money. But now the NRZ is
a mere shadow of its former self,” he bemoans.

Chitoro enjoyed the
regular 400km trips between Harare and Bulawayo using the NRZ as he was
assured of a reliable service whether on the night or day train. “The trains
were almost always on time, with clean bed linen in the sleeper class, clean
toilets and first-class bar services.

For instance passenger trains
servicing the Bulawayo/Harare route would leave both cities right on time at
9pm, arriving at 6am the following morning.

According to Chitoro, the
NRZ provided competitive services comparable to what South Africa and
Botswana offer today. The economy class would only be crowded during
holidays, unlike now when the few useable ones are always packed to the
brim.

Rail transport, especially the night service, was ideal for the
business or ordinary traveller as they could plan their journeys well in
advance or at short notice without endangering their lives by driving while
they were tired.

Holidaymakers would also board the day train to tour
the country’s scenic views. Clean as a whistle and well-maintained, the
NRZ’s first and second class were sleeper coaches which enabled passengers
the comfort of sleeping in beds while the third and fourth classes catered
for seated travellers. However the situation has deteriorated alarmingly
resulting in passengers enduring the foul stench that emanates from dirty
toilets.

Apart from the deterioration of train services, the NRZ
headquarters in Bulawayo is also a crumbling wreck. The general manager’s
once luxurious house in the affluent Suburbs area in Bulawayo has become an
eyesore with the once neatly trimmed lawn replaced by an assortment of
weeds. Surrounded by well-maintained houses, the shabby-looking building
sticks out like a sore thumb.

Due to the NRZ’s deterioration
travellers and holidaymakers now have limited options when it comes to the
modes of transport available because of the poor public transport system
which results in much loss of life during the festive
season.

Passengers and goods that could have been safely moved more
cheaply and safely by rail now heavily depend on the overstretched and
under-maintained road network because of the dysfunctional NRZ. Due to the
poor and unreliable train service, travellers are now forced to use buses
and other unroadworthy vehicles whose operators charge exorbitant fares
during peak periods.

The NRZ has been run down by successive
incompetent management leaving the rail company virtually redundant while
workers go for months without pay.

Surprisingly NRZ boss Mike Karakadzai
and his top management allocated themselves the latest Toyota Landcruisers
and Prados reflecting a sharp contrast with workers who are currently owed
salaries dating back five months.

The parlous state of the NRZ
suggests the parastatal’s latest projection to transport more than six
million tonnes of cargo in 2013 will remain a pipedream. The NRZ moved 12
million tonnes of cargo in 1992 and 19 million tonnes in 1997, but it only
managed 1,7 million tonnes in 2011.

Although NRZ’s cargo carrying
capacity is depleted, it is the passenger service that has borne the brunt
of the rail company’s mismanagement. The NRZ has partly blamed the
deterioration of standards on vandalism which has seen the firm losing
equipment worth millions of dollars.

About three years ago 380kms of
electric cable valued at US$110 million was stolen between Dabuka in Gweru
and Harare, and although it is suspected that the theft was masterminded by
insiders who know the company’s operations, no arrests were made.

The
NRZ now has about 168 locomotives with only 71 serviceable in 2011; the rest
were obsolete. Out of 8 682 wagons, only 3 427 were operational.

Once
viewed as an employer of choice, the firm’s workforce has shrunk from a
staff complement of 18 000 at Independence in 1980 to its current 7
000.

Bulawayo-based political and economic commentator Dumisani Nkomo
said there was a need to recapitalise and overhaul infrastructure in line
with modern technologies.

The NRZ needs about US$2 billion to
recapitalise and modernise its operations in the long term, but it was only
allocated a paltry US$20 million by the government.

“It’s (NRZ) also
contributing to the dilapidated state of roads as more heavy trucks are now
being used (to move heavy cargo) instead of using rail transport,” said
Nkomo.

“In countries such as the US and Canada, there is a sophisticated
rail network for both commuters and goods. We have to urgently revive our
rail network to a vibrant system and not confine it to history. The steel,
iron, coal and other mining sectors need a vibrant rail
system.”

Nkomo further queried the appointment of top managers with no
experience in the transport sector arguing that the move was part of a
broader plan by Zanu PF to control vital sectors of the
economy.Karakadzai is a former airforce officer with no history in the
transport sector.

But NRZ spokesman Fanuel Masikati said the
parastatal was refurbishing locomotives and wagons to boost its current
capacity while efforts were underway to establish public private
partnership.

“Customers can now bid farewell to periods of anxiety and
anticipation in the delivery of their cargo since it was established during
the trial period (of acquired express trains) that, with express trains, it
now takes a maximum of 46 and 40 hours to transport goods from as far away
as Hwange to Harare and from Beitbridge to Harare respectively, for both
local and imported traffic,” said Masikati.

VP’s
death spurs power battle

VICE-President
John Nkomo (78) died at Harare’s St Anne’s Hospital yesterday afternoon
aggravating the bruising battle for the vice-presidency among Zanu PF
heavyweights from Matabeleland who started jostling for the post as his
health deteriorated.

He had been ill for some time and was reportedly suffering
from prostate cancer.

Sources told the Zimbabwe Independent Nkomo was
rushed to St Anne’s at around 8pm on Wednesday after his condition
deteriorated.

Nkomo arrived at the hospital in an ambulance accompanied
by a nurse, nurse-aid and security details and was immediately whisked on a
stretcher into the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on the first floor
of the building.

The sources said Nkomo could not talk and was
struggling to breathe.He was promptly put on oxygen to aid his breathing but
his condition continued to decline culminating in his death at around midday
yesterday.

State security agents had visited the hospital an hour before
Nkomo arrived and ordered staff to clear the ICU saying a high profile
person was coming for treatment.

“Patients were moved from the ICU to
the Critical Care Unit (CCU) opposite the ICU,” said a hospital official.
“The CCU has the same facilities as the ICU so patients’ health was not
compromised.”The ICU was sealed off after Nkomo’s death as security agents
took control of the ward. State security agents were milling around outside
the hospital throughout the day yesterday.

Several ministers and
security chiefs rushed to the hospital after receiving news of Nkomo’s
death. Among the first to arrive after receiving the news were Defence
minister Emmerson Mnangagwa, State Security minister Sydney Sekeramayi, and
Transport and Communication minister Nicholas Goche.

The commander of the
Zimbabwe Defence Forces, General Constantine Chiwenga, and Zimbabwe National
Army commander, Lieutenant-General Phillip Valerio Sibanda, were also at the
hospital.

Although St Anne’s gives between 30 minutes and one hour to
remove a body because the hospital has no mortuary, Nkomo’s body remained on
his death-bed until President Robert Mugabe arrived at about 3.45pm, almost
three hours after his death.

Mugabe had earlier held a meeting with
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai, Deputy Prime Minister Arthur Mutambara,
MDC leader Welshman Ncube and the cabinet committee on the constitution to
resolve the impasse in the constitution-making exercise.Mugabe spent
about 15 minutes at the hospital before Nkomo’s body was removed by Doves
Funeral parlour shortly after he left.

Mugabe had earlier announced
Nkomo’s death at a press conference called by Global Political Agreement
principals to announce a breakthrough in the constitution-making
exercise.

“We have lost Vice-President Nkomo,” said Mugabe. “He was
suffering from cancer and we heard his situation had become worse from
yesterday (Wednesday) when he was taken to St Anne’s Hospital; that’s where
he passed away this morning (Thursday).”

“I want to express on behalf
of government, cabinet and Zanu PF our sincerest condolences to his family,
to his dear old mother, relatives and all his friends. We have lost a real
revolutionary, a fighter for freedom, a friend of the people and a lover of
children. He will be clearly missed by all of us.”

The United States
embassy’s public affairs section sent a condolence message to the Nkomo
family saying he had played an important role in the country.

“Whether as
a teacher, a politician, an advocate for Zimbabwe’s Independence, or as a
public servant, Vice-President Nkomo was a patriot who dedicated his life to
Zimbabwe’s sovereignty and prosperity,” the embassy said in a statement. “As
a leader of PF Zapu and Zanu PF, Nkomo played an important role in shaping
the course of Zimbabwean history.”

Nkomo’s death is likely to destabilise
Zanu PF ahead of crucial elections this year, given jostling for his
position started long before he died.

Zanu PF national chairman Simon
Khaya Moyo is favourite to land the vice- presidency because of his current
position in the presidium, but he may still be contested by Mines minister
Obert Mpofu whose influence in Matabeleland has grown rapidly triggering a
standoff with some party heavyweights.

Mpofu calls himself “Mugabe’s
ever obedient son” but has never been a favourite of most Zanu PF
heavyweights from Matabeleland largely because he floor-crossed to Zanu PF
prior to the signing of the Unity Accord in December 1987, and is thus
viewed as a sellout.

His biggest weapon, however, appears to be the
grassroots support he enjoys in the region, especially in Bulawayo and
Matabeleland North.

Together with Naison Khutshwekhaya Ndlovu, who was
the Zapu chairman when the Unity Accord was signed in 1987, Mpofu expressed
an interest to succeed the late Joseph Msika as vice-president in 2009, but
Nkomo landed the position by virtue of his seniority.

But the battle
may include people from other regions given that some regions have over the
last few years questioned why the VP position is reserved for someone from
Matabeleland. The Manyikas and the Karangas have been demanding a balance in
the presidium arguing they have been left out for a long time.

What they
said about Nkomo’s death

Zapu leader Dumiso Dabengwa described Nkomo as a
unifier and sober politician.

“He has been ill for some time and
although we complain when someone goes but there are instances where he has
been going through a lot of pain and you feel that death comes in as a
relief,” he said.Zanu PF secretary for administration Didymus Mutasa said
Zimbabwe had lost a dedicated leader.

“The party has lost a powerful
leader who played an important role during and after the liberation
struggle,” he said.

The MDC-T said Nkomo was a reconciliatory man who did
not engage in politics of vengeance “like some of his colleagues in the
party.”“We are saddened by the death of VP Nkomo, he was a reconciliatory
man and not a man of violence,” said MDC-T spokesperson Douglas
Mwonzora.

“His politics was different from that of his colleagues which
is that of blood. He was a reconciliatory man and befittingly he was leading
the leading the organ on national healing.”

Water Resources minister
Samuel Sipepa Nkomo (MDC-T), a cousin to Nkomo said the death was
“devastating to the family”.

GPA
reform relegated to back burner

WHEN Zanu
PF and the two MDC formations signed the Global Political Agreement (GPA) in
September 2008 ahead of the formation of the unity government in February
2009, most Zimbabweans pinned their hopes on the pact to usher in a
democratic dispensation that would allow credible, free and fair
polls.

Report by Brian Chitemba

Most of Zimbabwe’s elections,
especially since 2002, have been marred by allegations of an environment
heavily tilted in favour of former ruling party Zanu PF as well as
vote-rigging, widespread intimidation and violence, resulting in contested
outcomes.

Four years into the GPA the 24 major reforms the three unity
government protagonists — Zanu PF, MDC-T and MDC — agreed to implement seem
to have been forgotten as they squabble over the contents of a new
constitution.

According to the GPA implementation matrix, issues that
should have been implemented by now include regularisation of the
Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (Baz) board and re-appointment of a new
Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation board.

As part of media reforms,
the parties agreed that public media — ZBC and Zimpapers — would refrain
from hate speech against Zanu PF’s political foes while it was also part of
the pact that Baz would open up the airwaves to increase the democratic
space. Instead, Baz has been accused of licensing radio stations — ZiFM and
Star FM — with Zanu PF links.

The parties further agreed the National
Security Council should meet on the first Friday of each month, but that has
not been happening, while the controversial Joint Operations Command (Joc),
which was supposed to be disbanded, continues to meet.

Joc, which
brings together the army, police and intelligence chiefs stands accused of
planning and perpetrating violence on behalf of Zanu PF.

There has been
increasing silence from the three parties on these critical democracy
enablers with the major battles in the inclusive government being largely
concentrated on the disbursement of funds for voter registration and
political point scoring.

While conditions for free and fair elections
in Zimbabwe largely hinge on implementation of agreed GPA reforms, hunger
for political power seems to have overtaken the urgency of the
reforms.

Even the weekly GPA principals’ meetings have largely lost
relevance as they focus mainly on issues outside the crucial
reforms.

The principals’ meeting held in Harare on Monday, for example,
discussed allocation of funds for voter education and the
constitution-making process. Nothing about levelling the political playing
field, particularly as elections are expected this year was
discussed.

Political pundits allege Tsvangirai and his MDC
counterpart, Welshman Ncube, have now abandoned the issue of outstanding GPA
issues, instead allowing themselves to be stampeded into elections expected
later this year.

Senior researcher on Zimbabwe and Southern Africa with
the Africa division of Human Rights Watch, Dewa Mavhinga, says the parties
have now focused only on one aspect of reforms — securing an agreement on
the necessary legal and administrative requirements for
elections.“However, little attention has been paid to the implementation of
the agreed reforms and to securing agreement and ensuring reforms on areas
where agreement has not been reached,” said Mavhinga.

“The unity
government has unfortunately neglected the enforcement of various agreements
that would facilitate a rights-respecting environment and the holding of
credible, free, and fair elections.”

Mavhinga said the inclusive
government was still to implement key issues like the promotion of equality,
national healing and unity, introduction of police training programmes on
matters relating to the rights of freedom to assembly and association, and
prioritising a legislative agenda to reflect the letter and spirit of the
GPA.

The election roadmap agreed on by Zanu PF, MDC-T and MDC in July
2011 and meant to pave way for free and fair elections remains largely
unimplemented and virtually forgotten.

The parties agreed on the
roadmap to craft “milestones and signposts that must be executed and
implemented before the next election”.These include the constitutional
process, media reforms, electoral reforms, rule of law, freedom of
association and assembly, a legislative agenda, and logistical preparations
for the actual election, including voter registration and accreditation of
observers.

The political parties have remained deadlocked on the staffing
of Zec as well as security sector reforms, as Zanu PF has flatly refused to
entertain any demands on the issues saying those are no-go areas.

The
failure to incorporate the entire GPA into law, Mavhinga said, meant the
agreement together with the roadmap to elections remains a document of
political aspirations with no legal status.

Mavhinga added that its
implementation was hampered by the fact that it was dependent on political
will for enforcement of its provisions.Political commentator Rodrick Fayayo
argued that political parties have made a crucial mistake by rushing through
the constitution-making process because of a push for elections.

The
election rush, Fayayo said, was likely to compromise a number of important
issues that are supposed to be enshrined in the governance
charter.

“A constitution is for posterity and we can’t afford to rush
through for the purposes of simply wanting to complete it,” said
Fayayo.“If push comes to shove and people cannot agree and feel they should
have elections at whatever cost, it would be better to put aside the
constitution-making exercise and then devote as much time as possible to
this very important document at a later stage.”

However,
Bulawayo-based human rights lawyer, Kucaca Phulu is of another
opinion.

“The voters’ roll is key. All other reforms will work if
people register to vote,” said Phulu. “Historically voter apathy has
influenced elections even more than intimidation and other
factors.”

With so much of Zimbabwe’s immediate future riding on a free
and fair election, chances are that by ignoring reforms, the unity
government parties could be scoring a spectacular own goal in the form of
yet another disputed election.

Zanu
PF bigwigs face boot

AT least five Zanu
PF bigwigs are on the brink of being expelled from the party following
revelations of fraud and self-enrichment in a diamond money scam involving
more than US$750 000, part of which they allegedly used to bankroll
luxurious lifestyles.

Mabika
has since submitted her report to the party’s national chairperson Simon
Khaya Moyo.

Zanu PF national secretary for administration Didymus Mutasa
said: “We have received reports to that effect (the US$750 00 fraud) and
there is a committee that is investigating the matter chaired by Mai
Mabika.”

Madiro and his colleagues are facing allegations of soliciting
money from diamond mining companies in Chiadzwa, Mbada Diamonds and Anjin,
purportedly for party activities, including preparations for the party’s
annual people’s conference in Gweru last December.

Contacted for
comment yesterday, Madiro said: “I have no comment; write what you
like.”

According to correspondence between acting police
Commissioner-General Levi Sibanda, acting President Joice Mujuru, Khaya Moyo
and Mabika, the five allegedly converted the money to their own use in a
fraudulent scheme for personal gain which involved the buying of houses,
vehicles and other properties.

Highly placed sources told the
Independent Madiro, who is said to be a protégé of Defence minister Emmerson
Mnangagwa in his fight with Mujuru for control of the party, was set to be
fired from his position last week.

However sources said Mnangagwa and
Zanu PF Women’s League boss Oppah Muchinguri fought in his corner and
successfully argued that a provincial disciplinary hearing be first
conducted before making recommendations to the politburo.

Mukodza was
the first major casualty after youth secretary Absalom Sikhosana signed his
dismissal letter following a vote of no-confidence.

The provincial
disciplinary committee was set up under Mabika, who summoned Madiro and the
others to a hearing held last week in Mutare.

The Independent was shown a
copy of a letter signed by Mabika inviting Madiro to appear before a
disciplinary hearing on January 12 at 10am to “answer allegations of acts of
fraud and corruption associated with you”.

Sources said Madiro and his
accomplices approached Mbada Diamonds and another unnamed diamond company to
solicit funds for the Zanu PF annual people’s conference held in Gweru last
December, and were money which they allegedly converted to their own
use.

It is alleged Mbada gave them US$300 000 while the other unnamed
company gave them US$450 000 which they shared amongst
themselves.

The saga only came to light after one of them reported the
matter to Mutare police after being paid less than what he expected from the
US$450 000.

When the Independent approached one of the accused provincial
executives who requested anonymity, he said: “There were no problems in
sharing the first US$300 000 but matters only came to a head when we
received far less than we anticipated of our share of the US$450
000.”

Sources said a third diamond company (believed to be Anjin)
insisted on depositing its donation of US$400 000 into a Zanu PF bank
account.When the matter was reported to the police, Sibanda wrote to Mujuru
in a two-lined letter — with the police report attached – seeking advice on
what action to take since the issue involved party bigwigs.

Mujuru
then wrote to Khaya Moyo telling him to take action. Khaya Moyo subsequently
met with the national disciplinary committee of which Mnangagwa is a
member.

It was at this meeting that Mnangagwa and Muchinguri allegedly
shot down the idea of sacking Madiro, arguing that the case be first dealt
with by the provincial disciplinary committee in Manicaland.The
provincial disciplinary committee met Madiro and the four before meeting
representatives of the mining companies to hear their side of the
story.

Allegations are that Madiro used part of the money to complete the
building of a 36-roomed mansion in Mt Pleasant along Arundel Road.

He
has also bought a Volkswagen Amarok vehicle, whose price ranges between
US$48 000 and US$56 000, sources said.Mukodza, who used to work for the
Mutare City Council before his dismissal last year, is said to have moved
from his one-roomed lodgings in Sakubva to a three-bedroomed house in
Hobhouse 2, in Mutare. He now reportedly drives a Toyota Nadia, among other
vehicles he has since bought.

“Mukodza bought house number 4244 Hobhouse
2; two stands in the Border-View suburb; another near 3 Brigade in Chikanga
and St Joseph all in Mutare,” said the source.

However, a relative of
Mukodza, Timothy Mukodza phoned the Independent yesterday claiming that he
was the rightful owner of number 4244 Hobhouse 2.

Sources said either
Arda chairman Basil Nyabadza, who is being pushed by Mutasa, or central
committee member retired Lt-General Mike Nyambuya, who is seen as a neutral
in the province, is likely to take over as acting chair until fresh
elections are held if Madiro is fired.

Madiro was one of the six
provincial chairpersons suspended over the Tsholotsho declaration in 2004 at
which a plot to propel Mnangagwa to the vice presidency was allegedly
hatched after the death of Vice President Simon Muzenda.

Zanu
PF’s planned meeting over Byo revival ‘just crocodile tears’

ZANU PF Bulawayo Province has invited economic and industry
cluster ministries run by the MDC formations to a meeting to deliberate on
ways of reviving the city’s collapsed industrial sector.

Report by
Nqobile Bhebhe

The planned meeting is being organised by Zanu PF’s
commissariat department, but it has been dismissed as a mere electioneering
gimmick aimed at reviving the party’s electoral fortunes in a city where it
has failed to win a single parliamentary seat since 2000.

However,
Zanu PF Bulawayo provincial chairperson Killian Sibanda on Wednesday denied
the planned meeting was part of an election campaign.

“Zanu PF has never
capitalised on the plight of the suffering people to campaign,” said
Sibanda. “We have always been with the people during and after any
elections. No one is to blame for the current situation, therefore we are
not campaigning. Elections will come and go, but grievances will
remain.”

Sibanda said the engagement is part of a broader party
strategy of addressing the economic plight of the city, which was once the
country’s industrial hub, as the Distressed and Marginalised Areas Fund had
failed to “revive a single firm” since the available money is
inadequate.

MDC Bulawayo spokesperson Edwin Ndlovu said the move was a
Zanu PF ploy to appear as if it has the interests of industry in Bulawayo at
heart.

“It’s just crocodile tears,” said Ndlovu. “In fact, they should
tell the people that industries began collapsing during the price control
era under their very own minister Obert Mpofu (who was in charge of industry
and commerce). My boss (Industry and Commerce minister Welshman Ncube) will
certainly not attend such a kangaroo court so people should not take the
meeting seriously,” Ndlovu said.

Ncube has previously indicated that
close to 100 companies have closed shop in Bulawayo rendering more than 20
000 people jobless.

Outrage
over baby elephants export

ANIMAL rights
activists have vowed to continue their battle for the release of four baby
elephants exported to China from Zimbabwe as the secretariat of the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora (Cites) investigates whether Zimbabwe’s live elephant export was above
board.

Report by Tendai Marima

In November 2012, four baby
elephants were taken from the Hwange National Park to Taiyuan Zoo and Tien
Shan Zoo Safari in northern China.

Environmentalist group, Zimbabwe
Conservation Task Force (ZCTF), was outraged and said the calves were too
young for the long journey to China. The elephants reportedly endured a
12-hour drive from Hwange National Park to Harare International Airport and
a long-haul Emirates flight to the Far East via Dubai.

In early
January, it was reported that one of the baby elephants had died, sparking
further protest as campaigners alleged the infant had died from the trauma
of the journey.

ZCTF and other international animal rights groups voiced
concerns over the conditions in which the calves were being held and called
on Cites to revoke the export permits.

On January 6, a petition was
drawn up and posted on the online petition website, avaaz.org.

In
less than a week, more than 10 000 had signed the document which was then
sent to the Cites secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland. In response to the
petition and numerous other calls for action, the secretariat issued a
statement last week Friday.

Cites explained that live trade between
states was permissible, but the world regulatory body does not have the
power to withdraw export permits issued to member states.

“Both
Zimbabwe and China are longstanding parties to Cites,” the group said in a
statement. “All permits and certificates for trade under Cites are issued
and accepted by the designated national Cites authorities of the 177 state
parties (countries) to Cites. The Cites secretariat does not issue any Cites
permits or certificates, and has no authority to directly intervene in Cites
trade transactions.”

Prior to the Cites’ statement, campaigners for
animal rights said the export of this species of African elephant was
endangered, but the international body in its statement said at the present
moment the Loxodonta africana (African elephant) of Zimbabwe was not
threatened with extinction.

Cites further said it was liaising with
wildlife authorities in both China and Zimbabwe to determine if the
exportation was done procedurally.

Zimbabwe plans to export another 10
elephants later this month, but animal activists have vowed to continue
petitioning Cites to stop further live animal exports between the two
countries.

Parliament
should scrutinise mining deals

ZIMBABWE
should involve parliament and cabinet in the granting of mining rights and
mining deals as a means to curb rampant corruption which is mostly
perpetrated by government officials, an independent watchdog has
said.

Report by Taurai Mangudhla

Mining deals are currently
approved and awarded by the Minister of Mines with special grants being
given by President Robert Mugabe.

Transparency International Zimbabwe
(TIZ) said in its report on the state of corruption in the mining sector
that there is urgent need for reform as government ministers are behind most
corrupt activities concerning the extraction, sale and export of gold and
diamonds in Zimbabwe.

“Through parliamentary scrutiny, all the mining
deals are examined to ensure that there is transparency, accountability and
probity on the part of the public officials involved,” the report said.
“This will remove the veil of secrecy currently synonymous with mining deals
in Zimbabwe.”

The finding of TIZ’s reports focuses on gold, diamond and
platinum mining in Kwekwe, Gwanda, Mhondoro-Ngezi and Chiadzwa.

In
the mining of diamonds, particularly in Marange, politicians are believed to
be influencing the awarding of the mining contracts.TIZ says there is no
transparent and accountable process in which concessions to mine diamonds in
Zimbabwe are awarded.

“Basing on evidence prevailing on the ground, the
study found out that all the companies that have been given mining rights to
mine diamonds in Zimbabwe are those with close links to senior politicians
in government and the military,” read the report. “The Chinese company,
Anjin is a beneficiary of having close links with senior politicians in
government and the military as the instrumental means through which it
gained access to the Marange diamonds.”

To this effect, TIZ proposed
an overhaul of the country’s ambiguous mining policy; finalisation of the
Diamond Act and capacitating of the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority officials to
effectively collect taxes and royalties to curb corruption that has cost the
country millions of dollars through mineral leakages. Mineral leakages are a
threat to the country’s potential to generate export earnings in the region
of US$2 billion annually over the medium – term and upwards of US$5 billion
a year within 15 years.

The high level of graft has seen Zimbabwe being
rated 163rd out of 176 countries by Transparency International’s corruption
perception index, making it the most corrupt nation in the Sadc
region.

“An effective fight against corruption demands political will to
back up intentions to mitigate corruption. The presidency should show
serious resolve to do away with corruption in the mining sector by backing
up prosecuting agencies such as the police when it comes to bringing to book
politicians and bureaucrats found to be involved in corrupt deals in the
mining sector.”

It said government should come up with stiffer
penalties that make it unattractive to engage in mineral related
corruption.

According to the report, bureaucratic corruption is out of
control in the Ministry of Mines and members of the police force as it
emerged that ministry officials are in the habit of overtly demanding bribes
or kickbacks from members of the public who wish to venture into mining in
return for gold mining licences and mining claims in areas that are deemed
lucrative in terms of mineral deposits.

“The Ministry of Mines
officials have made it extremely difficult and almost impossible for people
to venture into mining without paying some form of a bribe. It has become
common occurrence that those who fail to pay bribes to ministry officials
find themselves being supplanted for flimsy reasons either for encroaching
into existing claims or having been allocated wrong claims,” said
TIZ.

Politicians from Zanu PF are accused of using their influence to
derive personal gains from gold and diamond mining through forming
syndicates with illegal panners and agents who act on their behalf to escape
attention and public scrutiny.

The agents or “runners” are
responsible for mining and even the illegal buying and selling of gold and
diamonds on behalf of the politicians.

“Runners for politicians enjoy
immense protection from the law such that their illegal activities are not
usually investigated by the police,” TIZ revealed.

Propaganda
war won’t diminish Gukurahundi

THERE is now a
deliberate concerted effort to downplay the Gukurahundi massacres as
evidenced by the current, apparently coordinated, discussion of the
matter.

Report by By Sithelo Mpala

Recently there were two
articles in the media, one defending the brutal massacres as a national
security issue (Gukurahundi was not genocide, by Mai Jukwa, NewZimbabwe.com)
while the other frames them as a conflict between civilians of different
tribes and the victims should forgive and move forward (Don’t abuse
Gukurahundi by Darlington Mahuku and Bowden Mbanje, The Herald).

This
propaganda material was sent for publishing in different media to target
different audiences and achieve maximum readership. One article targeted
NewZimbabwe.com to reach the online and mostly international readership
while the one in The Herald aimed for national readership.

These two
articles most probably appeared by design. The evidence that can be used to
connect these two articles is the similar messages they carry.

First,
they have a nationalistic tone, emphasising moving beyond the Gukurahundi
massacres to becoming a united nation. Second, they exonerate the government
and military leaders of any wrongdoing.

The exoneration is through
omission. The articles are glaringly silent on scrutinising the decisions of
the political and military leadership, as well as that of the foot
soldiers.

Instead the architects, such as President Robert Mugabe and Air
Force commander Perence Shiri, are portrayed as heroes who saw the massacres
as “madness” that should not be repeated, even though they happened under
their resolve to intensify the killings of innocent and unarmed civilians,
and arrest of the Zapu leadership. Lookout Masuku, a Zapu leader who was
never charged with any crime, ultimately died from illness while
incarcerated.

Third, the articles portray the massacres perpetrated on
peaceful, unarmed and innocent civilians in Matabeleland and Midlands as a
“conflict of every man against every man” and a tribe against tribe.The
Gukurahundi is now being framed as a Rwanda-kind of genocide where civilians
killed each other.

This is a big lie. The Gukurahundi massacres resulted
in the deaths of about 20 000 innocent and unarmed civilians in Matabeleland
and the Midlands by a government army battalion, the Fifth Brigade in the
1980s. The innocent and unarmed civilians were accused by the Zimbabwean
government of supporting armed dissidents.

Yet, no evidence has been
provided up to this day, and even the lowest of the low revisionist will not
expressly claim that these innocent and unarmed civilians sympathised with
or even supported dissidents.

The mere fact that these revisionists, who
portray themselves as champions of reconciliation, are so deceptive
demonstrates how evil the whole plan is to diminish and even revise the
facts on Gukurahundi. If the Matabeleland and Midlands victims of the savage
killings were somehow allowing themselves to forget the Gukurahundi, then
this evil revisionist onslaught is opening up old, yet still fresh,
wounds.

It is misguided for these revisionists to abuse their
intellectual powers to distort knowledge about the massacres, while on the
other hand calling for forgiveness and reconciliation.

It is hardly
strange that it’s easy for these revisionists to engage in such deception
because they did not experience the massacres. They did not lose their
fathers and mothers or brothers and sisters, hence their academic jigsaw
puzzle approach.

To the victims, the massacres are not an academic jigsaw
puzzle that governance and political analysts discuss with the intent of
developing different perspectives and theories to justify or tone them down.
If we want to make it an intellectual ball game, let the people have their
voice or just open the Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP)
report which documented the savage murders, and see whether these
intellectuals will manage to handle what comes out of that
exercise.

To demonstrate that the case for the revisionists is selective
and deceitful they don’t refer to the CCJP report, the official report which
documented the massacres and was presented to then Prime Minister Robert
Mugabe.

Even the fact that the revisionists continue to state that the
massacres were a conflict between civilians of different tribes shows beyond
reasonable doubt their bad faith.

When these emerging revisionists
suggest Gukurahundi massacres were a civilian conflict they actually mean
Matabeleland and Midlands people were dissidents. The funny thing is that
they don’t identity the other tribe which supposedly fought Matabeleland and
Midlands people.

But we know there were no other opposing civilian tribes
fighting these people except the massacres by the army’s Fifth
Brigade.

People from Matabeleland and Midlands regions never attempted to
take up arms or organise against the Zimbabwe government or soldiers. They
neither supported the dissidents nor created any structures to support
dissidents. It thus becomes ridiculous to justify why anyone should be
killed. That’s why we need a truth and reconciliation commission to
understand what motivated the killing of the 20 000 civilians by government
soldiers.

There cannot be reconciliation or moving forward under the
current deception. There should be reconciliation, but it should happen in
an environment of truth, frankness and genuine remorse.

However, the
prosecution of those responsible for the massacres would serve as a lesson
to anyone now or in the future who might want to kill or promote the killing
of other people.

Killing people that we disagree with especially on
political issue continues to be a problem now. So one of the ways we can
eradicate this immoral culture is to hold people to account through
mechanisms such as the truth and reconciliation commission.

On what
basis do we call the Gukurahundi massacre victims to move ahead if they
don’t publicly recount their ordeals, trauma, and pose questions while
voicing their expectations? But obviously those who did not experience the
massacres cannot empathise.

UNWTO:
‘Liberalise visa regime or lose out’

AS
Zimbabwe and Zambia continue preparations to co-host the United Nations
World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) general assembly in August, the world
premier tourism body’s technical inspection team has expressed concern over
delays in tackling delicate issues critical in enabling the successful
hosting of the event.

Report by Herbert Moyo

UNWTO regional
director for Africa Ousmane Ndiaye said Zimbabwe should liberalise its
airspace and implement a visa-friendly system for the country and the rest
of the continent to grow their share of the tourism market from the present
paltry 4% to double digits by 2020.

Speaking in Harare on Tuesday soon
after jetting into the country to assess the preparedness to host the mega
tourism event, Ndiaye said government’s protectionist policy was slowing
down tourism growth as evidenced by the single percentage digits market the
country currently enjoys compared to the potential it
possesses.

“Africa is only enjoying 4% of the tourism market when there
is huge movement of people that is creating huge opportunities for its
people,” said Ndiaye. “We want to increase it and to do so we should be
opening up our skies,” he said.

“The liberalisation of our transport
system and visa facilitation is very important.”

Ndiaye’s calls
follow similar sentiments by Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) chief
executive Karikoga Kaseke and Tourism and Hospitality minister Walter Mzembi
who have bemoaned the impact of a stringent visa regime and regimented air
system on tourism.

The current aviation policy is believed to be
discouraging the involvement of private players while favouring struggling
national carrier Air Zimbabwe.

The policy requires new airlines to
develop other routes, a process that takes at least two years, according to
aviation experts.

Whereas international airlines like British Airways,
KLM and Emirates are vying to land on Zimbabwe’s runways in respect of the
Open Skies Policy, the situation is different on the domestic front as major
local routes like the Harare-Bulawayo-Victoria Falls routes are a preserve
of state-controlled Air Zimbabwe.

Following a meeting between
government and players in the tourism sector in September last year in which
the latter pleaded with the Transport ministry to open up the domestic
skies, Kaseke said government was working on a positive solution which would
be announced “in the next few months”.

However, nothing tangible has
materialised to date, prompting the visiting Ndiaye to add his voice to
demands for liberalisation of the country’s airspace.

Mzembi, who
said Zimbabwe would receive a projected three million visitors in 2013,
urged authorities to deal with challenges faced at Zimbabwe’s ports of
entry.

“Statistics already show that 89% of our arrivals are
intra-Africa,” said Mzembi. “So why not make that even easier for
ourselves,” he asked. “Business tourism is being frustrated by our visa
regime which is too bureaucratic, lengthy and expensive and literally
discourages travel into Zimbabwe.”

Global travel and tourism
generates US$1,2 trillion in direct income; receives nearly a billion
people; employs 240 million people, and has a global impact on gross
domestic product believed to be in the region of US$6 trillion. Of this,
Africa’s share is only 4%.

Even if domestic routes were to be opened up
to other players and air travel to Victoria Falls was easily available, the
resort town’s airport is too small and still has to be upgraded in line with
UNWTO recommendations.

“It’s the same perennial problem,” said Mzembi of
the transport and visa issues. “You can predict with accuracy that come
December, Beitbridge will be clogged and our airports will be overburdened
with traffic. So we need to fix the reception issues.”

He said most
conference delegates may have to land at Zambia’s Harry Nkumbula Airport in
Livingstone in the event of failure to upgrade the Victoria Falls Airport on
time. For their part, the Zambians have begun upgrading the Livingstone
Airport which already has a bigger capacity than Victoria Falls
Airport.

Documents seen by the Zimbabwe Independent at the South-West
Regional Tourism Development offices in Livingstone reveal the Zambians
expect to complete their preparations and upgrades by June.

Other
developments include the upgrading of ablution facilities, an inter-city bus
terminus and street lighting along Livingstone’s roads.

MDC-T
youths demand parly election quota

MORE
conflict is brewing in the MDC-T as party youths are openly demanding a
quota be reserved for them in parliamentary elections expected sometime this
year.

Report by Elias Mambo

The youths say the quota system
would be a way of rewarding them for the crucial role they have played as
foot soldiers since the formation of the party in 1999, but their demands
have been met with resistance from the national executive and some members
of the youth assembly.

While MDC-T Youth Assembly national secretary for
information, Clifford Hlatshwayo, wants a certain percentage of
parliamentary seats and council wards reserved for youths, his chairperson
Solomon Madzore said they would stick to party regulations.

“We
demand a quota system along the lines of the gender parity system and our
leadership should be aware this is our right,” said Hlatshwayo.

“We are
not declaring war; this is a youth national council resolution. We will
persuade our leaders and tell them a peaceful and smooth transition in the
future can only be realised if the youths have practical experience
now.”

Hlatshwayo said youths are arguably the most visible
demographic group in the run-up to any election, but account for little in
terms of representation and only a quota system could redress this
anomaly.

However Madzore said the youth assembly must be guided by party
rules and regulations which clearly state there would be no special
treatment with regards to criteria for candidate selection.

“The
party is very clear on the rules and we have to follow party policy,” said
Madzore. “We do not run our association differently from the party so those
interested in contesting elections should work hard to battle it out with
those already in parliament.”

MDC-T spokesperson Douglas Mwonzora said
there is no quota system policy in the party and the youths should rally
their supporters and openly contest in the primaries.

“Our policy is
that there is no quota system but the youths are free to contest elections
as long as they meet the criteria in the candidate selection document,” said
Mwonzora.

“Youths can demand special treatment but party rules will
always prevail over individual demands. Anyone who feels capable is free to
contest. They (youths)must fight for the seats.”

Masvingo
council woes: Zanu PF seeks political mileage

THE Zanu PF Masvingo provincial executive is divided over
whether to bail out the beleaguered MDC-T- run council whose property was
attached after losing a US$3,5 million salary dispute against workers in the
Labour Court.

Report by Staff Writer

The MDC-T- run Masvingo
council was taken to court by the municipality workers’ union after failing
to pay its workforce.

Council, however, has no money and some of its
assets have been attached. Zanu PF sources confirmed there was an urgent
meeting aimed at devising an action plan to stop the auctioning of 43
council vehicles, among other property, by the local deputy
sheriff.

“We had a meeting in which we tried to come up with an action
plan to bail out the council but some members felt the MDC-T should be
exposed for failing to run urban councils,” said the source.

“We want
the cars to be auctioned so that people can see how bad their choice was in
voting for the MDC. It is a good lesson and it is happening when elections
are around the corner.”

However, some senior Zanu PF provincial members
suggested that the party bails out council to prevent a complete collapse
and then arrange a peaceful demonstration in the city bemoaning lack of
service delivery and maladministration by the MDC-T.

If the council’s
property is auctioned, the Masvingo local authority would lose
top-of-the-range vehicles ranging from the mayoral Mercedes Benz,
ambulances, refuse trucks, twin cabs for departmental heads and front end
loaders and graders, among others.

The attachment of council property
is threatening to paralyse council work and residents are living in fear of
disease outbreaks after many went through the festive season without running
water. Refuse has also accumulated to unbearable levels since garbage trucks
were attached.

However Masvingo mayor Femias Chakabuda took a swipe at
Zanu PF for playing political games and pretending to be
concerned.

“This is not a political matter and so they can keep their
money,” said Chakabuda. “In fact, the council has won the case to stop the
auction. They created these problems and they now want to pretend they can
be of assistance to the people. What is their interest in this matter?” he
asked.

Furore
over youth quota directive

“YOUTHS” in
Zimbabwe have a chequered if not infamous role in the political and
socio-economic affairs of the country beginning with the overzealous,
communist-style Zanu PF youth brigades of the 1980s.

Report by
Herbert Moyo

Prior to the 1985 elections, the youths, clad in their
trademark green shirts and khaki trousers, went on the rampage under the
direction of Zanu PF, meting out violence on those believed to be supporters
of former vice-president Joshua Nkomo’s party, PF Zapu.

Homes were
burnt, mob beatings and murders were reported as the youths responded to
President Robert Mugabe’s alleged call to “go and uproot the weeds from your
gardens”.

In 2001, Zanu PF sought to change this violent image through
the introduction of the National Youth Service, purportedly to instil a
“sense of responsible citizenship among the youth” and prepare them for “the
world of work”.

“The youth service will provide opportunities for
employment and participation in development, contribute towards the
eradication of poverty, promote healthy lifestyles and personal well-being
of the youths,” said the late Border Gezi, who was the Youth, Gender and
Employment Creation minister at the inception of the controversial youth
training service.

The youths, derisively dubbed “Green Bombers”, emerged
from the training camps only to enhance their notoriety by allegedly
torturing, raping and intimidating perceived opponents of Zanu PF,
especially in the run-up to the 2002 presidential elections.

Now in
2013, Youth Development, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment minister
Saviour Kasukuwere has come up with what could be a make-over plan which he
says would save the country’s youths and finally see them take their
rightful place in the socio-economic development of Zimbabwe.

Kasukuwere
has crafted a directive compelling foreign-owned companies, already forced
to cede 51% of their stake to indigenous Zimbabweans, to have a 25% youth
representation on their boards of directors in line with the contentious
Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act. These youths must be under the
age of 35 years.

“This is a way to empower our youths and we want to
ensure full compliance,” Kasukuwere said this in Mt Darwin a fortnight ago.
“I have noticed that the youths have a tendency to assume (that) sitting on
the boards of big companies is a preserve of the older generation and by so
doing they are discriminating against themselves.”

On the face of it,
this appears to be a noble move which could lead to empowerment of the
country’s youths, but that has been the case with many other policies
enunciated by the Zanu PF government since Independence and as such the move
has met with much scepticism.It remains to be seen if the policy will be
properly implemented by bringing in the right mix of suitably qualified
professionals free from the political partisanship that has been the
defining feature of Zanu PF-crafted policies.

Kasukuwere’s initiative
resonates with the Institute of Directors of Zimbabwe (IoDZ) and the
Zimbabwe Leadership Forum’s call for new skills on corporate boards to avoid
recycling the same individuals.

IoDZ chairperson Johannes Mudzengerere
said companies tend to look for the “very few” well-known persons to sit on
their boards.

“Having the same people on various boards will certainly
limit the effectiveness of boards as you are bound to have restricted
skills, increased conflict of interest and reduced independent judgment,”
Mudzengerere said.

Kasukuwere’s deputy Tongai Matutu of the MDC-T has
given the proposal the thumbs up describing it as “a noble plan that will
facilitate the youth’s participation in the economic affairs of the country
provided they appoint people with the technical know-how”.

Institute
for a Democratic Alternative for Zimbabwe public policy and governance
manager Jabusile Shumba welcomed the move as an initiative that would ensure
youths participate more effectively in national policy processes and the
laying of an important foundation for regeneration of leadership in pursuit
of national developmental aspirations.

“Zimbabwe has a highly youthful
population constituting about 53% of the total population,” said Shumba who
also sits on the Zimbabwe Youth Council (ZYC) board.

The ZYC is a
quasi-government institution established by the Zimbabwe Youth Council Act
(Chapter 25:19) which advises government on youth matters.

Indeed, the
youth can have a significant role to play in national processes because,
after all, the first mass political party, the Southern Rhodesia African
National Congress (SRANC) formed in 1957 was born out of the City Youth
League which had young firebrands in the mould of James Chikerema and George
Nyandoro.

The 1970s liberation war was fought by young men and women
including the likes of the late General Solomon Mujuru and Zanu PF secretary
for women’s affairs Oppah Muchinguri, culminating in the first independent
Zimbabwe cabinet featuring baby-faced Simba Makoni and present
Vice-President Joice Mujuru.

Shumba’s optimism is however tempered by
a caveat, born out of mistrust for any policies manufactured in Zanu PF’s
self-serving political laboratories.

“Empowerment is inherently a
political process vulnerable to partisan political manipulation,” warned
Shumba. “This good idea can easily be manipulated to advance partisan
interests by rewarding violence merchants ahead of merit in the appointment
process.”

Shumba’s scepticism was shared by Dumisani Nkomo of Habakkuk
Trust who said Kasukuwere’s latest directive is part of Zanu PF’s patronage
system to accommodate party apologists and forestall potential backlash from
the youths by giving them “decorative positions in economic
entities”.

“If we had a proper and functioning economy there would be no
need for all these so-called policy actions to empower the youths,” said
Nkomo, who added that lessons should be learnt from the then young
entrepreneurs like Strive Masiyiwa and Nigel Chanakira who succeeded in the
corporate world without the assistance of political
patronage.

Pedzisayi Ruhanya of the Zimbabwe Democracy Institute was more
scathing, describing Kasukuwere’s directive as a “mobilisation agenda to
bring back those youth brigades and Border Gezi groups ahead of elections
with the lure of cash and positions”.

Time will tell whether the
country’s youths, with a reputation for thuggery and violence under the
tutelage of Zanu PF, would exchange these for suits, seats and the
sophistication of corporate boardrooms.

More
farmers take up tobacco farming

MORE
Zimbabwean farmers have taken up tobacco growing in the current season, as
the golden leaf promises to fetch high prices on the international
markets.

Report by Taurai Mangudhla

Leading US-based farming
publication, the Tobacco Farmer Newsletter (TFN), recently noted a likely
improvement in tobacco prices in 2013 as a result of various market factors,
including a deficit caused by poor to mediocre quality of flue-cured tobacco
in Brazil and the US in the previous two successive seasons.

“Also,
it may be that Brazil has hit a ceiling on the amount of flavour-style
flue-cured it can produce. If so, then increased demand for flavour-style
flue-cured will have to be met with increased production in the US and
Zimbabwe,” said TFN, adding tobacco buyers also indicated optimism for the
flue-cured market beyond the 2012 crop and were actively seeking ways to
retain current growers and increase production.

Flavour-style flue-cured
tobacco is grown mainly in the US and Brazil, with Zimbabwe re-emerging
after the collapse of its agriculture sector following its fast -track land
reform of 2000.

The publication said consequently, global supplies of
premium flue-cured tobacco were currently low even though overall supplies
were up. According to TFN, there was an anticipated increase in demand for
flue cured tobacco mainly because of increased cigarette production in
China.

“The global trend toward banning flavourings in cigarettes may
increase the amount of flavour-style flue-cured needed in blends to
compensate for no flavourings.”

Last week, Zimbabwe’s Tobacco
Industry Marketing Board (TIMB) reported that the country expected to
produce 170 million kgs of tobacco in the current season after 77 910
hectares of land had been put under the crop, 38% up from 56 377 hectares
last season.

TIMB CEO Andrew Matibiri said more than 65 000 farmers had
registered to grow and sell the lucrative crop this season compared to 34
673 last season. Last year, Zimbabwe’s tobacco exports raked in US$771
million at an average of US$5,94 per kg. The crop is expected to drive
economic growth.

The World Bank recently said Zimbabwe’s economic crisis
led to the collapse of the agriculture sector which used to contribute 20,7
% of its GDP in the 1990s.

While the sector is slowly recovering,
there is much variation in the recovery among commodities and farm types,
the World Bank said.

“The 2009-2011 growth was led by tobacco, produced
increasingly by smallholders in new contract farming arrangements, and
supported by high international prices, with a strong performance of the
cotton sector, where higher prices have favourably acted on expanded
contract farming arrangements,” said the institution in its overview note on
Zimbabwe’s Growth Recovery.

Maize and poultry have also come close to
recovery of pre-crisis production levels while all other commodities remain
far from recovery, with crops such as wheat remaining a small fraction of
peak 1990 levels due to poor access to credit and erratic power
supply.

Government
restructures POSB

PEOPLE’S Own Savings
Bank (POSB) is headed for a fresh start after the government recently
approved restructuring proposals that will transform its shareholding
structure and lead to the possible listing of the bank on the Zimbabwe Stock
Exchange, a cabinet official said.

By Staff Writer

In an exclusive
interview with businessdigest this week, State Enterprises and Parastatals
minister Gorden Moyo said government approval had been granted for a
restructuring of the bank and its listing.

“Three key issues that need to
be addressed are firstly that the POSB’s original mandate of serving the
grassroots people needs to be retained. There is need for the country to
have a bank that specifically caters for the marginalised sectors of the
economy, particularly the rural-based population. POSB’s infrastructure and
distribution network has that reach. And that needs to be preserved,” Moyo
said.

“Secondly, there was a proposal to introduce a commercial unit
within POSB that will very be competitive. This unit will aggressively
engage with other big banks in competing in the same space with them. To
this end, POSB will need to capacitated through an injection of capital and
additional skills.”

He said this would necessitate the creation of a
joint venture with an appropriate local, regional or international
partner.

“To this end, the agreed position is that government is prepared
to relinquish 49% shareholding in POSB to such an identified partner,” Moyo
said.

“Government would need to amend the POSB Act to align with the
new strategic thinking,” he added

Detailed documents on the proposed
plan, seen by businessdigest, show the decision to engage a strategic
partner after amending the POSB Act. Officials preparing the restructuring
memorandum made several recommendations with four options:

“These
options entail invoking Section 25 subsection (3) of the POSB Act which
provides for equity participation of up to 49% by the private players in
POSB. This would mean that POSB’s mandate would remain unchanged and also
the current corporate tax and statutory reserves exemptions would still
apply.

In this regard, it is recommended that the criteria for
engaging a suitable strategic partner should be biased towards the
developmental and social aspects of POSB mandates,” read part of the
documents.

The minister however emphasised in order to attract a suitable
partner who is able to promote the current POSB mandate, several sections of
the current POSB Act had to be amended.

Murowa
pushes diamond output up 11%

Rio Tinto’s
Murowa Diamonds production rose 11% to 98 000 carats in the fourth quarter
of 2012 compared to 88 000 carats in the same period in the prior year,
according to Rio Tinto’s production figures as at December 31,
2012.

Report by Taurai Mangudhla

Murowa’s annual production
for the year stood at 313 000 carats, up 9% from 285 000 carats in
2011.

Diamond ore processed in the quarter amounted to 154 000 tonnes,
bringing the annual total to 542 000 tonnes.

The mine processed 126
000 tonnes in the first quarter of the year, 120 000 tonnes in the second
quarter and 142 000 tonnes in the third quarter.

Rio Tinto is a leading
international mining group headquartered in the UK, combining Rio Tinto plc,
a London and New York Stock Exchange-listed company, and Rio Tinto Ltd,
listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.

The global group owns
Murowa jointly with RioZim Ltd, which accounts for the balance of the
shares. RioZim is an independent company listed on the Zimbabwe Stock
Exchange.

According to Indigenisation minister Saviour Kasukuwere, Murowa
is soon expected to relinquish majority shareholding to Zimbabwean locals in
line with the country’s economic empowerment legislation.

According
to media reports, Rio Tinto plans to cede 29% of its stake in the diamond
mine to Zimbabwean locals, where 10% would be transferred to a community
share ownership trust, another 10% to employees while the balance will be
given to the National Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment
Fund.

Murowa’s operations significantly contributed to the total group
diamond production which grew 12% to 1,3122 million
carats.

Production at Rio Tinto’s wholly-owned Austalian operation,
Argyle Mine grew 14% to 8,471 million carats, while the company’s 60%-owned
Canadian operation Diavik Mine’s production rose 8% to 4,338 million
carats.

Group diamond output increased 9% year-on-year to 3,248 million
carats in the last quarter of 2012, with increases registered at all of its
operations.

Electoral
pact absolutely crucial

LAST year I
suggested that an electoral pact was imperative and inevitable. Since then
there has been heated debate over the issue.

Opinion by Dumisani
Nkomo

If the two MDC formations (MDC-T under Morgan Tsvangirai and MDC
under Welshman Ncube) do not agree on such an arrangement, chances of them
losing to Zanu PF are quite high.

This arrangement would help in
constructing a stable new economic and political architecture in the
post-Zanu PF era as the former ruling party (Zanu PF) is unable and or
unwilling to capture international support and investor
confidence.

The two MDCs should swallow their pride and look at the
greater good for most Zimbabweans and this I believe would be an electoral
pact which would enable them to field one candidate for the presidential
elections and concur on candidates for parliamentary and local government
polls.

Political egosThe biggest impediment to an electoral pact
between the two MDCs is not ideological as the parties are two dominant and
separate social democratic entities.

In the current contestation, it
is more about egos than anything else since both formations want to prove
that they have political muscle and support. The MDC–T would like to prove
once and for all that it is the most dominant party by vanquishing the
Ncube-led MDC and Zanu PF.

The MDC is keen to prove it has gained ground
and is a kingmaker in Zimbabwean politics.

In their ambitions the two
parties are correct because political parties exist to contest for power and
not necessarily to share power. In normal cases political parties can also
exist to defend and advance specific geo-political, socio-cultural, economic
or environmental interests.

However, in the context of Zimbabwe such a
political architecture is a luxury we cannot afford and the political
superstructure in Zimbabwe provides no room for such luxuries
either.

If the two parties continue to dilly dally Zanu PF and its leader
President Robert Mugabe will win the next elections, confining the two
formations to history as Zimbabwean politics in five years’ time may be
quite different from now with the possible emergence of strong alternative
new political factors, formations and voices, and the possibility of a
reformed Zanu PF. In essence this is the last chance for the MDC-T and
Tsvangirai to win elections and this could also be the last time for Ncube
to maintain his relevance to Zimbabwean politics.

The Zanu PF
factorIn the same manner that the resurgence of Ncube’s MDC is undoubted,
the resurgence of Zanu PF is a political reality for the following
reasons:

ApathyApathy is likely to be a factor in the next elections
as the electorate is likely to have little motivation for voting. Voter
turnout is likely to dwindle as it has for the past three elections. The
protest vote on the other hand is unpredictable and may shrink. The protest
vote has also been affected by a massive exodus to the
diaspora.

Second, while being quite suicidal for the economy the
community share ownership scheme and indigenisation programmes may get Zanu
PF more votes, especially in rural Mashonaland, Manicaland, Masvingo and a
few pockets in Matabeleland.

This, coupled with dents to the brand of
Tsvangirai last year as a result of well-publicised scandals surrounding his
love life and policy inconsistencies, could erode the MDC-T’s support .This
does not however automatically translate into support for Ncube in all
cases, but rather erosion of confidence in the whole voting and political
process thus contributing to apathy. This makes an electoral pact absolutely
necessary as both MDC formations could end up being the biggest
losers.

The Ncube-led MDC has made a remarkable turnaround and is indeed
a force to reckon with but will not win the presidential or parliamentary
elections. If Zimbabweans are still motivated primarily by the desire to
remove Mugabe and Zanu PF, Ncube’s party would then become an unfortunate
victim of broader protest politics regardless of the quality of its policies
and candidates.

Ncube will definitely make a mark on the southern part of
the country but in the broader scheme of political arithmetic this may
present an advantage to Mugabe and Zanu PF who will benefit from a split
presidential vote and splits in votes for parliamentary seats coupled with
apathy.

For the Ndebeles in Matabeleland it is unacceptable for a Ndebele
to be only seen as a vice-president and not contest for the post of
president, but in the current scheme of things Ncube can still mount a
formidable challenge in 2018 instead of going the “all-or-nothing” route.
The MDC -T would also be presented with a win-win situation as they need to
win the presidential election and secure a majority in
parliament.

There is a lot of bitterness and acrimony between the two
parties as a result of the original split in 2006 and the failed 2008
agreement amongst other things. When a husband and wife fight all they
remember are each other’s worst attributes and characteristics. In essence
the two MDCs have more in common than they realise and they both have more
to gain from an electoral pact. We need the intelligence and substance of
Welshman Ncube as well as the charisma and brand of Morgan
Tsvangirai.

I am confident that the two leaders and their parties will
show the nation that they are true national leaders with the people at
heart. What they are doing now is like the old story of little children who
fight over what they would do with money were they to pick it up! The MDCs
must grow up.

Nkomo is the chief executive officer of Habakkuk Trust,
activist and spokesperson of the Matabeleland Civil Society Forum. He writes
in his personal capacity. Email: Dumisani.nkomo@gmail.com or follow
his blog dumisanionkomo.blogspot.com.

Disregard
sweet-talking Mugabe

WHEN in the company
of fellow heads of state or foreign dignitaries President Robert Mugabe
likes to give the impression that while things might not be going swimmingly
well for Zimbabwe, the unity government has been quite a success and parties
are working closely to solve the country’s debilitating
problems.

Editor’s Memo with Stewart Chabwinja

However, when his
guard is down Mugabe is wont to slam the unity government as an unlawful
“creature” foisted on the people, whose abject failure prompts hasty
recourse to polls.

On Tuesday, in the presence of outgoing African Union
chairperson, Benin President Boni Yayi at State House, the diplomatic mood
moved Mugabe.

He gave the impression parties to the tripartite unity
government had somehow found each other and realised they have a common
destiny despite their differences.

In a rather euphemistic tone
Mugabe said: “In my country, yes, we have also had divisions, political
divisions, but I am glad that we all appreciate that whatever political
affiliations we belong to, we are Zimbabweans.

“… I think our elections
are going to be very friendly elections in the sense that they will be a
political fight, but it will be a fight in the knowledge that we belong to
each other.”

Hopefully Mugabe’s opponents will not be gullible enough to
swallow the dissembling “friendly elections” baloney, patently packaged to
lull them into a sense of complacency ahead of elections widely expected
this year.

It would be the height of folly for anyone, given the
country’s electoral record and Zanu PF’s humbling setbacks in the 2008
polls, to expect peaceful and friendly elections when so much of the future
of Zanu PF — with the handy state apparatus at its disposal — rides on the
outcome of the anticipated plebiscite.

The elections are also a
must-win for the party’s rivals, the MDCs, but violence has always been part
of Zanu PF’s election armoury, making the elections a potential powder
keg.

In the 2008 polls, Zanu PF surrendered its parliamentary majority
for the first time since Independence in 1980, while Mugabe lost to Morgan
Tsvangirai in the presidential poll, but the MDC leader fell short of the
requisite majority.

There’s no doubt Zanu PF is girding its loins for
a tough battle and triumph at the polls by means fair or foul, making the
prospects of Zimbabwe’s maiden “friendly elections” extremely remote. We
have reported on Zanu PF’s poll preparations which include acquisition of
new vehicles, military presence in target areas, wooing of youths and
churches, stalling of Global Political Agreement reforms and inflammatory
remarks by security chiefs pledging allegiance to Zanu PF.

That
hardly smacks of a party helping lay out the groundwork for “friendly
elections”, does it?

Given the events of the 2009 presidential polls
when the military intervened to save an embattled Mugabe through a vicious
and bloody campaign, a peaceful election would require a damascene
transformation on the part of Zanu PF.

Certainly, it will take much
more than sharing tea with Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai!

As if
Mugabe’s pretensions needed exposing, the Copac constitution-making
exercise, a year-and-a-half behind schedule despite gobbling up about
US$150,2 million, hit another snag on Wednesday as selfish party agendas
continue to hold sway. Talks have yet again broken down, as what should be a
nation-rallying exercise continues to be bogged down by parochial party
interests.

Making
a living in the ‘informal sector’

MILLIONS
of people in Zimbabwe make their living in the informal sector.

Candid
Comment with Eddie Cross

Those of us who live and work in the formal
sector have little or no idea what it is like to live in this “other world”.
There are some incidents in my life that illustrate what it is like to be
dependent on the informal sector to make a living.

I was driving back
to Harare from Gaborone when I offered a lift to some Zimbabwean women.
Three women came with their huge bags containing their purchases and I put
one in front with me and the other two in the open back.

The lady in
front was from Highfield in Harare.

When we got to Bulawayo they asked me
to stop at a service station so they could use the toilet. When they came
out of the toilet, I noticed that the lady who was sitting in front with me
was now distinctly more slender.

She was now carrying what turned out to
be 25kg of machine tools destined for an engineering company in Harare.
These had been held in a kind of shoulder harness that she had under her
dress.

She saw my expression and exclaimed, “At least we are not
thieves”.She explained that she did this trip every two weeks and had a list
of clients in Harare for which she was known as a “runner”.

Whatever
they needed she purchased and smuggled. I took her to her residence in
Highfield and found that she had several children dependent on her.

The
other glimpse I had was last year when I visited Beitbridge with a team from
parliament to try and sort out the chaos there. After our business, another
MP and I from Bulawayo decided to hitch a lift home rather than return to
Harare.

We boarded a kombi from Johannesburg and my colleague chose to
sit with the driver while I was given a seat at the back next to an
attractive young lady.

We got talking and she told me she was a
“commercial sex worker” in Johannesburg and she spoke quite openly about her
life there. She was going home to see her family.

We went through
eight roadblocks on the way to Bulawayo with my colleague flashing her
parliament tag at every one of them and we were immediately waived
through.

When we got to Bulawayo the driver said: “You can come with me
anytime; you saved me at least R600 today in bribes on the road.”There
are no safety nets in Zimbabwe; if you do not work you starve.In a country
where the formal sector has collapsed and now only employs less than one
person in 10, this means 90% of every community has to make their living in
the informal sector.

How they do that is infinitely different. Some are
involved in illegal activities and others marginally legal. Life is hard and
when things go wrong the consequences are immediate.

But they make
their way with humour and ingenuity, hard work and effort. Helping them make
a better living with security and in a way that preserves their dignity is
one of the great tasks of African governments.

Mujuru’s
epiphany as elections loom

President
Mugabe on Tuesday said the forthcoming African Union (AU) summit should
discuss the appointment of a President of Africa to foster unity among
Africans.

Column by MuckRaker

No guesses who Mugabe would want to
assume that position!Mugabe told visiting Benin President Boni Yayi that
problems facing Africa such as conflicts can be averted only if the
continent is united under the 1963 banner adopted by the then Organisation
of African Unity founding fathers.

However, outgoing AU chairman Yayi
parted from Mugabe’s hymn sheet, defending the body’s decision to seek
Nato’s intervention in Mali.“The issue of Mali is very critical . . . you
are right we did not succeed to resolve the issue. Not only to Bamako, we
have discordance in the government,” Yayi said.

“As Ecowas, we didn’t
succeed to resolve the issue. The rebels, as a result of religious
intolerance, are killing people. They cut the hands, arms and the legs,
everything, the women, the youths and so on. It is a gross human rights
violation, very critical. They are moving from the north heading towards
Bamako.”Hail the King of Africa

Yayi said if the rebels occupied
Bamako it would not only be catastrophic for Mali and the sub-region, but
that would affect the whole world.

That is unlikely to have gone down
well with Mugabe who is still inconsolable over his chum Muammar Gaddafi’s
demise following Nato’s intervention in Libya.

Mugabe’s rants against
Nato intervention go against the sentiments of even the Malians themselves
who were relieved to finally see action being taken to stop the rebels in
their tracks.

“The right way was to ask for assistance from Nato. We are
ready to go to Mali to help our brothers,” Yayi said, rubbing it
in.Mugabe seems to have taken on Gaddafi’s mantle after accepting the
deposed Libyan strongman’s black and gold gown with which some Kenyan chiefs
declared Gaddafi “King of Africa”.

Paul Kamlesh Pattni the chairman
of the house of traditional leaders in Kenya had said: “Mugabe stands for
African leaders and the rights of Africans as a whole. We saw it fit to give
him this gown which was given to us by Gaddafi before his death and we saw
it fit to give it to Mugabe because he stands for Africans.”Gaddafi had
been declared “King of Africa” six months before he was deposed and it seems
Mugabe has taken over. That can’t be a good omen.

Mujuru’s
epiphany

Meanwhile Vice-President Joice Mujuru was quoted in the Sunday
Mail saying Mugabe was anointed by God to lead Zimbabwe at the age of 10 and
those fighting to replace him are wasting their time.

Church leaders
are anointed by God, she said, making them irreplaceable.

“People are
wasting their time by opposing President Mugabe,” she said. “It was
prophesised way back in 1934 when he was only 10 years old that he was going
to lead the country. How can a normal person challenge such a
leader?”

There was nothing wrong with people having ambitions, she
continued, and discussing politics with their wives.

“They should not
however tamper with the presidency. It is sacrosanct. These positions come
from God, they do not just come.”So it is not permissible to challenge
Mugabe’s current position because he is divinely anointed and therefore
irreplaceable?Unfortunately the events of 1934 have not been published and
are therefore not fully understood. We are only hearing about them for the
first time.

Roping in the divine

How does Mujuru know that Mugabe
was anointed to lead the country at the age of 10? Was there a divine
revelation of some sort that we are only now hearing about? And what about
other nationalist leaders such as Herbert Chitepo, Josiah Tongogara, Leopold
Takawira and Edgar Tekere?

Were they not also the beneficiaries of divine
revelation because, after all, they were prominent in the Zanu leadership as
was her husband?

Perhaps Mai Mujuru could spell things out for us. Are
Zanu PF party members ever going to be permitted to challenge Mugabe for
office or is it permanently forbidden because of a divine forecast of 70
years ago to a Zvimba goatherd which nobody has heard of until now? And of
course this has nothing to do with forthcoming elections? Most people ––
inside and outside the party –– are likely to see Mujuru’s remarks as giving
a hostage to fortune.

This is how they run a country, people will
say. They will point to the comments as illustrative of the party’s growing
desperation when it starts inventing hagiographies of its
leader!

Zanu PF mixed signals

We were interested in Patrick
Chinamasa’s statement that land guaranteed by Bippas could still be acquired
by the state.Herbert Murerwa said recently that foreign-owned land would not
be seized. But then Chinamasa weighed in last week to say the government
could do what it liked so long as compensation was full and
fair.Fascinating isn’t it how Zimbabwe sends such mixed signals to the rest
of the world. No wonder investors are not exactly lining up to rush
in!

Meanwhile, let’s see what fate befalls Zimplats after its
capitulation to Saviour Kasukuwere and his circus.

Like fathers like
sons

Regular readers of this column may recall our remarks some months
ago about the child parliament. The institution seemed too close to the
one-time ruling party, we said, with all those uniforms and marching around.
Indeed some “officers” “put on” old-style badges and
paraphernalia.

We were not surprised therefore that some of these senior
“officers” were bullying juniors back at their school.

NewsDay
reported last Friday that Form 1 boys were subject to four hours of corporal
punishment when they angered their seniors by making derogatory remarks
about them. They were made to kneel for four hours. Parents subsequently
complained.

But what struck us was the way in which the bullies, who we
gather had party connections, were expected to bully juniors in the same way
their dads bully political opponents.

The fruit, it seems, does not
fall far from the tree!

Money doctor

The garrulous Philip
Chiyangwa was at it again this week declaring he is a “money doctor and
champion of economic empowerment for the poor and down-trodden”.

“I
am Dr Phillip Chiyangwa, doctor of money. Do you know I am a doctor?”
Chiyangwa declared in Chinhoyi where he launched a bereavement scheme “for
the poor”, NewsDay reports.

Members of the burial society would only
pay US$1 monthly subscription and have their entire families covered by the
funeral policy, Chiyangwa claimed.

We are sure Chiyangwa’s long-suffering
workers will beg to differ. Chiyangwa has been accused by teachers at his
private school, Divaris Makaharis of using “bullying tactics” to stop them
from demanding payment of their outstanding salaries.

However, in
Chinhoyi, Chiyangwa was pledging to bankroll income-generating projects
initiated by Zanu PF supporters.

Despite being very articulate in making
promises, Chiyangwa is surprisingly mum on fulfilling them. He has suddenly
become quiet on his pledge in April to donate US$1,6 million to the
University of Zimbabwe.

He had also promised to bring “empowerment to the
ordinary man’s door-step” in Mabvuku saying he was “exploring” the idea of
assisting emerging businesspeople in Mabvuku with collateral.Three
months on Chiyangwa is still to emerge from his expedition.

Dubious
credentials

Chiyangwa, we are told, was last month conferred with an
honorary Doctor of Philosophy degree in Business Leadership (honoris causa)
by St Linus International University in recognition of his “business acumen
and sterling contribution to society”. St Linus University, an online
institute, is apparently headquartered in the Dominican Republic although it
is registered in the Philippines.

Much like Gideon Gono’s Atlantic
International University, St Linus International University’s credentials
are open to question.Juju faces the music

Poor old Julius Malema! The
disgraced former ANCYL president is now being deserted by his friends who he
says treat him like a leper.“I have lost a lot of friends. I am one person
who believes that those who leave you during difficult moments were never
with you even before,” Malema whined in an interview with the Rapport and
City Press newspapers.

“We’ve seen friends speaking in tongues and some
are even so ashamed to be seen with you in public because to them you look
like you’ve got leprosy and some don’t even take your calls. If they do,
they are very impatient.”

Malema isn’t helping the situation by lashing
out at erstwhile comrades like his successor Ronald Lamola who he has called
a “traitor” and “sellout”.

He claims to now spend his days tending his
cattle and growing cabbages and tomatoes on a farm near Polokwane in his
home province of Limpopo.

Narrowing
Zim’s trade deficit

THE trade deficit,
referring to the differential between the total value of a country’s imports
and that of its exports, has exacerbated Zimbabwe’s international
debts.

Column by Erich Bloch

In a recent review of the economy,
Finance minister Tendai Biti stated that for the 11 months to November,
2012, the trade deficit amounted to US$3,58 billion, as against a deficit
for the seven months to July, 2012 of marginally in excess of US$ one
billion.

Thus, in the last four months of the review-period, imports
exceeded exports by approximately US$2,5 billion, or an average monthly
deficit in that four month period of approximately US$600
million.

This is an untenable situation, not only contributing
substantially to the emaciated state of the economy, but short-circuiting
economic recovery.

The ongoing accumulation of debt is also a barrier to
the procurement of substantive foreign direct investment (FDI), and lines of
credit, essential as stimulants for economic upturn and employment
creation.The minister’s economic review indicated the highest expenditure is
made in the procurement of fuel, raw materials, intermediate goods for
industry, and diverse consumer goods.

These and, to a lesser extent,
other imports exceeded US$7 billion in the period of January 1 to November
15, 2012, against imports of US$5,5 billion in the corresponding period of
2011, representing increased imports of almost 37%.

In the same
period, exports amounted to US$3,42 billion, against US$3,12 billion in the
same period in 2011, an increase in exports of less than 10%. The review
noted the mining sector exports represented 61,8% of total exports, with
tobacco constituting 21,8%, other agricultural commodities 9,2%,
manufacturing 6,7%, and horticultural products and hunting trophies
comprising the remaining one-half percent. Of the mining exports, the major
contributants were platinum and diamonds.

It is economically
unsustainable to have imports markedly exceeding export revenues, and it is
long overdue for Zimbabwe to increase exports.

Concurrently local
industries must start producing currently imported goods, thereby
diminishing our over-reliance on imports. Many measures and actions which to
increase exports and decrease imports can be put in place. Such measures and
actions include:l Resurrecting agricultural production. At one time,
agriculture was the solid foundation of the economy, not only producing most
basic needs for the populace, but exporting in such magnitude that Zimbabwe
was known as the region’s “breadbasket”.

Concurrently, it produced
vast quantities of tobacco, cotton, and citrus, among others.

Now it
produces only a quarter of the national maize needs, and an even lesser
output of other products. Livestock is imported from Botswana, whereas at
one time Zimbabwe was a major meat exporter. Much of the vegetables, fruit,
and poultry we consume are now imported.

To enable farmers to access
their funding requirements and regain substantive productivity, either title
deeds must be restored over rural lands, or 99-year leases must be
restructured to accord them collateral value status. Concurrently, in
recognition of the intensity of global climate change, and inadequate and
non-timeous rainfalls, government needs to be more proactive in the
development of dams and irrigation systems.

l Notwithstanding that there
has been considerable growth in Zimbabwe’s mining sector ensuring that the
trade deficit is lowered, the potential for that sector to increase outputs
is immense.

However, although Zimbabwe is benefitting from the rising
volumes of mining and the consequential increases in the exports of
minerals, the prospects of even greatergrowth of the mining sector are
considerable. To turn such prospects into reality, much greater FDI than
presently is forthcoming is needed. However, it will only be forthcoming
when potential investors are confident of investment
security.

Zimbabwe must demonstrate it will incontrovertibly honour its
Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements (Bippas).

l
Government needs to ensure a speedy and comprehensive recovery of the
manufacturing sector to ensure it once again provides products presently
being imported and generate exports.

The considerable volumes of
manufacturing sector production and exports in the 1980s, and for much of
the 1990s, is irrefutable evidence industrial operations can contribute to
the economy, and especially so where such operations are value-addition
oriented to Zimbabwean primary products. However, restoring wellbeing to the
manufacturing sector requires positive, comprehensive and urgent action by
government.

First and foremost, almost all enterprises are in critical
need of recapitalisation, having lost most of their operational capital
resources during the hyperinflation era of 2008 and thereafter because of
operational losses.

The concept of the Distressed Industries and
Marginalised Areas Fund (Dimaf) was highly commendable, albeit tragically
belated. But the reality is that Dimaf, as presently structured, cannot be
the stimulant of major manufacturing sector recovery.

Funding for
Dimaf is a paltry US$70 million, much of which not yet available, whereas a
substantive industrial recovery needs in excess of US$1 billion. Government
does not have such money but should source the needed funding from bodies
such as the African Development Bank, African Export and Import Bank,
Development Bank of Southern Africa, and Industrial Development Corporation
of Southern Africa.

Concurrently, Dimaf must facilitate enhanced
accessibility to its funding on terms which practically recognise the needs
of the intending borrowers.

At the same time, government must urgently
address the reintroduction of export incentives, and come up with realistic
import duties in order to level the competitive playing field between
locally-manufactured products and those emanating from countries excessively
subsidising and incentivising their exports.

Simultaneously, import
duties need to be realistically reduced on imported manufacturing inputs,
and infrastructural service delivery must be substantially and rapidly
enhanced.

These are but a few of the actions that government could, and
should, vigorously pursue, in order to reduce Zimbabwe’s crippling trade
deficit, whilst simultaneously contributing to economic
recovery.

Land
grabs: The new ‘hard work’

YESTERDAY
Zimbabwe woke up to disturbing news that President Robert Mugabe’s wife,
Grace, had seized an estate owned by ZSE-listed Interfresh Holdings backed
by a piece of paper signed by Mashonaland Central governor Martin Dinha, a
lawyer by profession, known as an offer letter.

Zimbabwe Independent
Editorial

The occupation curiously came at a time when Agriculture
minister Herbert Murerwa earlier this month said government would stop
seizing land protected under Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection
Agreements. Although Interfresh is not protected under bilateral laws, it is
a public company owned by black Zimbabwean shareholders.

Though the
news may come as a shock for many, it provides part of the missing jigsaw
after Dinha, during the official opening of the Amai Mugabe Junior School in
Mazowe last week, said more land would be made available to the first lady
for her orphanage.

For a country desperately in need of foreign direct
investment, such blatant disregard for the sanctity of property rights,
which Mugabe once said should be respected, is destructive and retrogressive
behaviour by those who, after years of running down the country’s economy,
should be atoning for their destructive policies by crafting policies to
lure foreign investors.

This brazen violation of other citizens’ property
rights further sends chills down the spines of already unnerved investors.
The occupation of the farm puts a damper on Mugabe and government’s
commitment to make Zimbabwe a safe investment destination where property
rights are sacrosanct, particularly at a time the economy’s outlook is
looking gloomy with GDP growth expected to be lower than last
year.

Although it has not been confirmed that the first lady wants to
turn this productive land into an orphanage, her actions have triggered
questions about the presidential family’s multiple-farm ownership in the
wake of proof that Mugabe owns various pieces of land around
Mazowe.

Whenever a farm is occupied in the Mazowe area, the speculation
is always that the first lady is involved. Elsewhere, this would be a
scandal of ernomous proportions.

The latest move also brings to the
fore the question; just how many farms does the first family need? Elsewhere
in this paper, we list some of the land the Mugabes have reportedly seized.
The case of former Standard Chartered Bank CEO Washington Matsaira, which
got little publicity, quickly springs to mind. It’s a sad story of a banker
with title deeds to his land being forced to sell by the most powerful
family in the country and watching his investment go without
payment.

Ben Hlatshwayo, a judge in the High Court, was forced to take
legal action a few years ago against the first lady after she had occupied
his farm. The dispute only ended after an out-of- court settlement, but the
judge lost his farm.

Perhaps Hlatshwayo aptly captured the occupation
of his farm by the first lady in court papers where he reportedly said the
“unlawful conduct” by Gushungo Holdings, the Mugabes’ holding company,
clearly had “no lawful basis for such interference, which conduct, by its
very nature, amounts to spoliation”.

And a pertinent question here:
The first lady likes to expound upon the virtues of hard work. What hard
work is there in seizing somebody else’s property without batting an
eyelid?